Game apparatus



1' C. R. ENDRISS GAME APPARATUS March 3, 1953 Filed Jan. 17 1951 NNP W & A A

- I INVENTOR.

(War/e5 1Q End/ms Patented Mar. 3, 1953 UNITED STATES, PATENT OFFICE 19 Claims.

This invention relates in general to games, and

it deals more particularly with games of skill wherein a suitable game piece is manually propelled down a rigid alleyway toward a target.

Broadly speaking, my invention has for its object the provision of game apparatus of the type indicated which tests the skill of the player in rolling a thin circular disk on edge, and his skill in controlling its line of travel.

Another object is to provide a self-contained apparatus of this character in which the game pieces are automatically returned to the player at the completion of each play.

A further object is to provide a game wherein the score attained by the player is clearly indicated by signals associated with the targets or goals.

Other and further objects of the invention, together with the features of novelty whereby the objects are achieved, will appear in the course of the following description.

In the accompanying drawings which form a part of the instant specification and are to be read in conjunction therewith, and in which like reference numerals are used to indicate like parts of the various Views,

Fig. 1 is a plan view of my game apparatus with parts broken away for purposes of illustration,

Fig. 2 is an enlarged longitudinal cross section taken along the line 22 of Fig. 1 in the direction of the arrows, and

Fig. 3 is a transverse sectional elevation taken along the line 3--3 of Fig. 2 in the direction of the arrows.

Referring more particularly to the drawings, the alley of my game apparatus comprises an elongate horizontal bed or runway I supported on laterally spaced vertical side walls l2 by means of brackets M which are positioned at intervals along the length of the runway. The side walls extend above the level of the runway to form curbs on either side thereof; however, as may best be seen in Figs. 1 and 3, the opposite edges of the runway are spaced inwardly from these curbs to provide longitudinal gutter openings l6 extending the full length of the runway on either side. The openings are sheltered and somewhat concealed by ledges or flanges l8 projecting inwardly from the upper edge of the respective side walls, these ledges being spaced above the runway and substantially coterminous therewith.

At the far end of the alley, i. e., the end opposite that at which the player is stationed, is a box-like housing I whose sides are coplanar with, and in effect extensions of, the side walls !2. The housing has a vertical rear wall 2!! and a slightly sloping top 22, the forward portion of which comprises an access door 24 hinged at 26 to swing upwardly as indicated by the arrow 28. Fixedly secured to the forward edge of the door is the front wall 30 of the housing which extends downwardly so that the opposite ends of its lower edge normally rest on ledges Ill. The entire mid-section of the lower edge of the front wall preferably is arched upwardly to provide an entrance to the housing which spans the alley bed l0 and is elevated a considerable distance above same.

Inside the housing l5 along the upper forward corner thereof is a transverse compartment 32 extending from one side of the housing to the other. The bottom of the compartment is formed by a horizontal strip 34 extending crosswise of the housing and fixedly secured to the front wall so that it extends rearwardly therefrom above the aforementioned entrance; the rear wall of the compartment comprises a door 36 coterminous with said strip, hinged along its upper edge to the underside of the access door 24. The front wall 30 contains a plurality of windows 38 (which may be differently colored or provided with numerals or other suitable indicia for scoring purposes) and disposed in compartment 32 behind each window is a lamp 40 mounted in a socket 42. Compartment door 36 normally is secured in the position shown by a hook or latch 44, but when the housing is opened by raising the access door 24, this may be unlatched and swung in the direction shown by arrow 46 for the purpose of replacing burned out lamps or the like.

Below each of the windows 38 is a gate 50 depending from the bottom 34 of the compartment and hinged thereto at 52 to swing rearwardly as indicated by dotted lines, it being understood, of course, that each gate may swing independently of the others. Each gate controls a separate switch 54 mounted on the inside of the front wall 30 of the housing, the switches being wired to the lamps and to a source of current in such fashion that when any gate swings rearwardly, the lamp above that gate will be illuminated briefly but will be turned off by the switch when the gate returns to its normal position.

It will be noted from Fig. 3 that the gates are disposed side by side with their lateral edges in close adjacency so that together they form a barrier extending the full width of the alley bed In. Their lower edges, however, are spaced somewhat above the bed, the purpose of which will be made clearer presently.

Referring to Fig. 2, attention is directed to the fact that the alley bed terminates at the entrance to the housing, the'bottom of the housing being formed by a horizontal endless belt conveyor 56 which extends forwardly under the alley bed substantially the full length thereof. Supported by the end rollers 58 and intermediate idler rollers 60, the conveyor is driven by means of a motor 62 and a suitable belt and pulley so that it travels continuously in the direction indicated by the arrows. The motor space is closed off from the balance of the housing l5 by a sloping wall 3 64 which, like the side walls and top of the housing, is suitably padded as shown at 66.

The conveyor belt is wider than the alley bed I so that its lateral margins are under the gutter opening [6, the edges of the belt preferably being as close to the side walls l2 as is possible without interfering with the operation of the conveyor. Some clearance at the edges is, of course, necessary, and in the case of the upper flight of the conveyor, this narrow space is covered by strips 68 secured to the side walls so that they project inwardly over the edges of the belt; extending the full length of the conveyor, these strips preferably are triangular in cross section with their upper faces sloping downwardly and inwardly as shown in Fig. 3.

At the discharge end of the conveyor there is a downwardly sloping discharge chute terminating in an upwardly extending transverse lip 12. The forward portion of the alley bed 10 also slopes downwardly above the upper portion of the chute as shown at Illa but this is shorter than the chute so that the lower portion of the latter is exposed.

The playing pieces contemplated by the present invention may take various forms, but it is preferred to employ solid disk-like members 15 which are relatively thin at their rims but somewhat thicker at the center, their side walls thus being slightly convex as shown. The diameter of these pieces is less than the vertical distance between the alley bed and the inwardly projecting ledges l8, and preferably the upper flight of the conveyor 56 is spaced below .the bed a distance somewhat greater than their diameter, although this is not absolutely essential; the lower edges of gates 50 are spaced above the plane of the alley bed'by a distance greater than the maximum thickness of the playing pieces.

In playing my game, the players are stationed at the end of the alley opposite housing I5, and from this station, manually roll the disks 15 on edge down the alley bed I0 toward the gates 50, the object being to strike a gate which is accorded a high point value. If a player is successful in keeping the disk on the alley bed I0 and in its on-edge position, it will strike one of the gates 50 when it reaches the entrance to the housing l5, and by swinging the gate upwardly as it enters the housing will light the lamp 40 above that gate for scoring purposes. On entering the housing, it drops onto the upper flight of conveyor 58 and is carried underneath the bed l0 back toward the players station. At the discharge end of the conveyor, it slides down chute 10, but is prevented from leaving the chute by means of lip 12 so that it may be retrieved by a player for nother play.

While points may be awarded for striking a single gate, it will be noted that the closely adjacent relationship of the gates makes it possible in the event a disk strikes dead center between two gates for both of the gates to be deflected, lighting the lamps behind two windows and correspondingly increasing the player's score. On the other hand, if a disk fails to remain in an upright position throughout its travel down the alley bed, that is to say, if it falls over on one face, it will slide underneath the gates without lighting any of the lamps and the player consequently will obtain no score. Also, if, as the result of faulty aim on the part of the player, the disk travels to one side or the other'of the alley bed, it will drop through the gutter opening 16 depriving the player of his score. In either event, of course, the playing piece drops onto the conveyor belt and is returned to the players station as hereinbefore explained.

The dimensions of my apparatus may, of course, vary over a considerable range. For example, while I prefer to make my alley of approximately the same length and width as a full size regulation bowling alley, it i equally feasible to reduce it considerably in scale, so that it is portable and capable of being placed on a table top for home use.

Thus it will be seen that the aims of the invention have been achieved, the game disclosed and described being well adapted to attain all of the ends and objects hereinbefore set forth, as well as having other advantages which are obvious and which are inherent to the device.

It will be understood that certain features and subcombinations are of utility and may be employed without reference to other features and subcombinations. This is contemplated by and i within the scope of the claims.

Inasmuch as various modifications of the invention may be made without departing from the scope thereof, it is to be understood that all matter herein set forth or shown in the accompanying drawings is to be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

Having thu described my invention, I claim:

1. A game alley comprising an elongate horizontal runway along which playing pieces are adapted to be propelled manually from one end of the runway to the other, a horizontal belt conveyor spaced below said runway and aligned therewith, said conveyor extending from said one end of the runway to a point beyond said other end whereby playing pieces that pass beyond said other end drop onto said conveyor, and power means connected to the conveyor for driving same in a direction to carry the playing pieces thus reaching the conveyor back under the runway to said one end thereof.

2. A game alley as in claim 1 having a receptacle at the discharge end of said conveyor for receiving the playing pieces.

3. A game alley as in claim 2 wherein said receptacle is disposed beyond said one end of the runway.

4. A game alley as in claim 1 having a stationary downwardly inclined chute at the discharge end of said conveyor for receiving the playing piece from the conveyor, the lowermost end of said chute extending beyond said one end of said runway and having an upturned lip for retaining the playing pieces on the chute.

5. A game 'alley as in claim 1 having curbs along the opposite longitudinal edges of the runway and substantially coterminous therewith,said runway having between the two curbs openings through which playing pieces may drop onto said conveyor.

6. A game alley as in claim 1 wherein said conveyor belt is wider than said alley and extends laterally beyond the opposite edges thereof, and vertical side walls adjacent the edges of said conveyor extending upwardly to a level above said runway to form curbs extending along the edges of the runway but spaced laterally therefrom, whereby playing pieces can drop through the space between either edge of the runway and the adjacent curb onto said conveyor belt.

'7. A game alley as in claim 6 wherein each side wall has below th level of the runway a longitudinal shoulder overhanging and covering the adjacent edge of the conveyor belt.

8. A game alley as in claim 6 wherein each side wall has along its upper edge a ledge projecting inwardly so its innermost edge overlaps the outer-- most edge of the runway but is spaced above same.

9. In a game alley, an elongate horizontal runway along which playing pieces are adapted to be propelled manually from one end of the runway to the other, a depressed gutter extending longitudinally of the runway on either side thereof, the bottom of each gutter comprising an endless conveyor belt extending the full length of the runway, and power means connected to said conveyor belt for driving same in a direction to carry playing pieces that drop into said gutter back toward said one end of the runway.

10. A game alley comprising an elongate horizontal runway along which playing pieces are adapted to be propelled manually from one end of the runway to the other, a pair of vertical side walls extending the length of the runway and spaced laterally from the edges thereof, means for supporting said runway on said side walls, a horizontal belt conveyor supported on said side walls below said runway, said conveyor extending laterally beyond the runway on either side thereof and having its edges closely adjacent said side walls, said conveyor extending longitudinally the full length of the runway, and power means connected to said conveyor for driving same in a direction to carry the playing pieces that reach the conveyor by dropping over th edges of the runway back under the runway to said one end thereof.

11. A game alley as in claim 10 having a sta tionary downwardly inclined chute at the discharge end of said conveyor for receiving the playing pieces from the conveyor, the lowermost end of said chute extending beyond said one end of the runway and having an upturned lip for retaining the playing pieces on the chute.

12. A game alley comprising an elongate horizontal runway along which playing pieces are adapted to be propelled manually from one end of the runway to the other, a pair of vertical side walls extending th length of the runway and spaced laterally from the edges thereof, means for supporting said runway on said side walls, a horizontal belt conveyor supported on the side walls below the runway, said conveyor extending laterally beyond said runway on either side thereof and having its edges closely adjacent said side walls, said conveyor extending longitudinally from said one end of the runway to a point beyond said other end whereby playing pieces that pass beyond said other end drop onto said conveyor, and power means connected to the conveyor for driving sam in a direction to carry the playing pieces that reach the conveyor back under the runway to said one end thereof.

13. A game alley comprising an elongate horizontal runway along which playing pieces are adapted to be propelled manually from one end of the runway to the other, a horizontal belt conveyor spaced below said runway and aligned therewith, said conveyor extending from one end of the runway to a point beyond said other end, a housing at said other end of the runway enclosing the portion of the conveyor projecting beyond same, the forward wall of said housing being substantially at the terminus of said other end of the runway and containing an entrance opening through which playing pieces can enter the housing from said runway and drop onto said conveyor, power means connected to said conveyor for driving same in a direction to carry the playing pieces thus reaching the conveyor back under the runway to said on end thereof, and a plurality of targets movably mounted on the housing in said entrance opening and adapted to be struck by the playing pieces as same enter the housing.

14. A game alley comprising an elongate horizontal runway along which disks are adapted to be rolled on edge from one end of the runway to the other, a horizontal belt conveyor spaced below th runway and aligned therewith, said conveyor extending from said one end of the runway to a point beyond said other end, a housing at said other end of the runway enclosing the portion of the conveyor projecting beyond same, the forward wall of said housing being substantially at the terminus of said other end of the runway and containing an entrance opening through which the disks can enter the housing from said runway and drop onto said conveyor, power means connected to th conveyor for driving same in a direction to carry the disks thus reaching the conveyor back under the runway to said one end thereof, and a plurality of targets movably mounted on the housing in said entrance opening and adapted to be struck by the disks as same roll into the housing on edge, the lower extremities of'said targets being spaced above said runway a distanc greater than the thickness of said disks.

15. A game alley as in claim 14 wherein said targets are coplanar and the confronting lateral edges of adjoining targets are spaced apart by a distance less than the thickness of said disks.

16. A game apparatus comprising an elongate horizontal runway, disks adapted to be rolled on edge manually from one end of the runway to the other, a cross piece bridging said runway at said other end thereof, said cross piece spaced above the level of the runway by distance exceeding the diameter of said disks, a plurality of coplanar targets disposed edge-to-edge across said runway and hingedly depending from said cross piece, the lower edge of each target being spaced above the runway by a distance greater than the thickness of said disks but smaller than the diameter thereof.

17. A game apparatus as in claim 16 wherein the lateral spacing between adjacent ones of the targets is less than the thickness of said disks.

18. Agame apparatus as in claim 16 having signal means controlled by each target and actuated thereby whenever the target is struck by one of said disks.

19. A game apparatus as in claim 16 wherein each of said disks has convex side walls whereby it is thicker at its center than at its rim.

CHARLES R. ENDRISS.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,357,778 Jacobs Nov. 2, 1920 1,508,961 Dietrick Sept. 16, 1924 2,469,886 Murphy May 10, 1949 2,521,563 Beck Sept. 5, 1950 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 150,021 Austria June 25, 1937 470,883 Great Britain Aug. 24, 1937 

